The University of Utah's healthcare arm will develop a hospital campus at The Point, a 600-acre state-owned mixed-use development in Draper. (Courtesy Selbert Perkins Design)
The University of Utah is moving forward with plans to build a new medical campus in the south end of Salt Lake County. The site will be the school health system's second remote hospital campus following the Eccles West Valley Health Campus and Eccles Hospital, currently under construction on 5600 West.
The university's board of trustees has voted to authorize a land purchase agreement for a roughly 46-acre tract at "The Point," a 600-acre innovation community being developed on state-owned land at the former site of the Utah State Prison in Draper. Currently in Phase 1, The Point is considered a prime commercial location along the Wasatch Front.
Trustees heard the proposal for the land purchase and campus development from Dr. Bob Carter, the university's executive vice president for health sciences. Carter said UofU Health has been working for several months with the Point of the Mountain State Land Authority through the university's real estate development team.
The tract to be purchased by the school has been appraised at $43,472,017, according to Carter's presentation. The agreement calls for the purchase price to be at or near the appraisal.
"The idea here is to bring care closer to home for individuals who are in the southern part of Salt Lake Valley," Carter told the board. "We know that growth is imperative because the state is growing, and the health system, likewise, has found significant demand from that region of this area."
The board of trustees released a brief statement following the vote, promising further details at a later date.
"Today, the University of Utah board of trustees authorized the purchase of 46 acres of land intended for a proposed health campus at The Point," the board's statement read. "This strategic acquisition allows UofU Health to serve as the exclusive health care provider for this rapidly growing corridor. We look forward to sharing more details during a ceremonial signing of the Purchase and Sale Agreement on Thursday, June 25, at the Utah State Capitol Gold Room."
Meeting shortly after the trustees' meeting, the Point of the Mountain State Land Authority, the governing body of The Point, ratified the agreement, which also designates University of Utah Health as the exclusive healthcare provider for the mixed-use community.
"With the expected population growth at The Point, both on our site of 600 acres and in surrounding communities, the need for a world-class facility to deliver healthcare services to Utahns is extremely important," Rep. Jordan Teuscher, R-South Jordan, the land authority's co-chair, said in a statement.
Plans discussed by UofU Health show the initial building at The Point as a 200,000 square-foot facility to serve as the base for a full-scale hospital and medical campus. Officials said the campus will expand over time to include inpatient hospital services, outpatient specialty clinics and other medical programs aligned with the university's mission of healthcare, education and workforce development.
The Point is being marketed as Utah's "Innovation Community," with housing, offices, research space, retail, entertainment and extensive open space centered around transit connections and a "River-to-Range" trail system. Planners envision a highly walkable district where residents, those entering the community for employment and visitors can access all services, businesses and amenities within a 15-minute walk. The University of Utah Health's campus is intended to fit that model.
As the second of University of Utah remote healthcare campuses, it wouldn't be a stretch to see final plans for The Point facility at full build-out to be similar to the West Valley campus currently underway. The university broke ground a year ago in West Valley and construction is just beginning with site work in progress. That facility will be an 800,000-square-foot health campus, including a 130-bed hospital, outpatient exam rooms, an emergency department, a walk-in urgent care clinic, specialty clinics and a helipad.
The West Valley timeline calls for outpatient clinics to open in 2028 and full inpatient hospital service to begin in late 2029 or early 2030. The UofU trustees are considering establishment of a temporary clinic to serve until the West Valley campus is complete.
University trustees did not disclose the financial details of the agreement with The Point, but money for the project is expected to come from a mixture of institutional investment funds, philanthropic donations and bonding retired by future clinical revenue.
